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| Fiji Troops Remove Police Weapons |
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Fiji soldiers began Monday loading guns and ammunition at the Police Tactical Response Division headquarters for removal after securing the compound for more than two hours. Two trucks went inside the compound and started loading guns and ammunition, said a reporter from Fiji Times, a Suva-based newspaper. The soldiers told police officers that they "wanted to inspect their weapons." Meanwhile, non-essential staff at the police station were sent home. The military crack down in Fiji appears to be underway. Fiji army commander Commodore Voreqe Bainimarama Thursday asked the Qarase Government to meet all his demands and has threatened "a peaceful transition" if that does not happen. One of Bainimarama's demands is that the police disarm the Tactical Response Unit. Sources told Xinhua the soldiers are now loading the weapons onto their trucks. Army troops have also gone out to secure another police armory, said the sources. Suva's street is still calm without many soldiers, Jin Renwu, a Chinese restaurant owner told Xinhua. It is reported the army is also trying to establish the whereabouts of all politicians. Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase is out of the capital at the moment. Tensions in Fiji have been high since Bainimarama threatened last month to remove Prime Minister Qarase from office. Bainimarama ever backed down from those threats after Qarase met his demand to amend controversial legislation, removing amnesty for people convicted over Fiji's 2000 coup. He issued last week demands to the government and a two-week deadline to comply, and has recalled army reservists in readiness for what he described as a "clean-up" of the Qarase government. On Wednesday night, the army conducted a several-hour exercise firing flares and securing areas of the capital by setting up checkpoints. On Friday, the army chief gave the Prime Minister a 24-hour ultimatum. Fiji, a South Pacific nation of about 900,000 people, consists of 800-plus volcanic and coral islands that have the country enjoy a tropical climate and a prime destination for tourists. However, racial and political tensions since 1987, including three coups, have been an intermittent source of instability of the country. (Xinhua News Agency December 4, 2006) |
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